Clothes-drying machine



A 2 SHEETS-SHEET l.

Patented Auf. 29,'1922.

"ATTORNEY C. W. COLLINS.

CLOTHES DRYING MACHINE.

APPLICATION FILED FEB. 14, |922.

Patented Aug. 29,d 1922.

ATTORNEY UNITED STATES CHARLES W. COLLINS, 0F SEATTLE, WASHINGTON.

CLOTHES-DRYING MACHINE.

lSpecification of Letters Patent. Patented Aug. 29, 1922.

Application led February 14, 1922. Serial No. 536,528.

To all whom t may concern.' v

Beit known that I, CHARLES 1V. COLLINS, a citizen of the United States, residing at Seattle, in the county of King and State of lrVasliington, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Clothes-Drying Machines, of which the following is a speciication.

This invention relates to clothes drying machines.

The object of the present invention is the provision ot' a drier having fewer parts, more compactly constructed and which is peculiarly ecient in operation.

ther objects and advanta es of the invent-ion will appear in the foilowing specication.

The. -invention lconsists in the novel construction, arrangement and combination of parts hereinafter described and claimed.

' In the accompanying drawings,-

Figure 1 is a transverse vertical section of a clothes drying machine embodying my invention, said section being taken through 1-1 of Fig. 4. Fig. 2 is similar view with the daiupers arrangedto produce a circulation of air different than that attained with the dampers arranged as shown in Fig. 1. Fig. 3 is a side elevation of the drying machine. Fi 4 is a horizontal section taken substantial y through 4 4 of Fig. 1.

1n carrying out the present invention. ll

provide a. casing 5 which is divided by. partitions 6, 7, 8 and 9, as shown in Figs. 1 and 2, into compartments 10, 11, 12 and 13, respectively. a

The 'compartment 10 which serves as a housing for a rotary drum 14 is of a general circular shape with an inlet opening 15 at the top which communicates through a chamber16 with the outlets 111 and 121 of the compartments 11 and 12.

The compartment 12 serves as a housing for a steam heating coil 17. The compartment 11 serves as a duct for the supply of unheated air to the chamber 16 from the compartment 13 in which is provided a power driven fan 18.

A damper l20 is provided to close the outlet. of the compartment 12and a damper 19 is employed to close either of lthe inlet openings 112 and 122 -of the compartments 11 and 12.

21 represents an opening provided in an end wall of the fan compartment for the admission thereinto of fresh air from the eX- ternal atmosphere. 22 represents a damper provlded in the opening 21.

In the wall of an exhaust chamber 23, provided in front of the fan compartment 13, is a discharge opening24 which may be unprovided with a valve or damper.

The compartment 1() for said drum communicates through passages 25 and 26 respectively with the fan compartment 13 and the exhaust chamber 23. i

A damper 27 servesto individually close either of the passages 25 or 26 as may be required in the operation of the machine. As shown, the damper 27 is in the nature of an imperforate plate pivotally connected, as at 271 intermediate its width.

Secured to and extending rectangular-ly from the damper 27 is a screen 28 of Wire gauze, or an equivalent, which is adapted to be brought, 'alternately with the damper wings 272 and 271, into juxtaposition with led es 29 and 30 of the casing structure.

.gs illustrated in Figs. 3 and 4, the damper 22 is mounted upon a spindle 3l provided with a toothed pinion 32 in mesh with a rack bar 33 which is guided for vertical movements in casing attachments 34.

The upper end of the bar is connected by a link 35 with an arm 36 provided on the spindle 191 of the damper 19 and, at its lower end, said bar is operatively connected to an arm 37 provided on the spindle 201 of the damper/20. v

The spindle 201 is also provided with a second arm 202 which is connected by a link 371 to an arm 38 provided on the damper spindle 274.

The arm 38, in turn, is connected as by a link 39 with means such, for example, as a handle-arm 40 whereby the screen 28 and all of the'aforesaid dampers are, by preference, simultaneously operated.

The connections between the several dampers are arranged to cause the damper 22 to close the air inlety 21 when the dampers 19, 20 and 27 occupy the positions in which they arerepresented in Fig. 1, and to have the damper 22 in its open position wlth re- Aspect to the inlet 21 when the dampers 19,

20 and 27 occupy the positions in which they are represented in Fig. 2.

The drum 14, for'the reception of clothes which are to be dried, has its peripheral wall formed of wire mesh oran equivalent whereby air may pass diametrically, or nearly so, through the drum in travelling betweetn SB Laat/,aso

chamber 16 and either et thepassages 25 or 26 which. respectively lead into the pump compartment 13 and the exhaust chamber 23.

The operation of the invention may be explained as follows: Assuming the damper 22 is in its closed position with respect to air inlet opening 21 and the screen 28 and dampers 20, 19 and 27 are disposed as shown in Fig. 1,`the fan will thereupon serve to effect the circulation oi' air through the compartment 12, to become heated by the coils 17 therein, thence through chamber 16, drum 14, passage 25, and screen 28 back to the fan 18. i

In thus'passing through the screen, the latter serves to collect on one side thereof the lint taken from the clothes Within the drum. After the air tor a desired length of time has been circulated in theabove described course, the attendant regulates the screen 28 and the dampers 22, 20, 19' and 27 to be in the positions in Which they are shown in Figs. 2, 3 and 4f., whereupon the fan serves to cause fresh air entering the opening 21 to be delivered through duct 11, chamber 16, drum 14, and screen 28 into the exhaust chamber 23 to escape through outlet 24.

It is to be noted that the screen 2li when in its Fig. 2 position extends across the passage 26 and when in its Fig. 1 position it extends across the passage 25 and the air 5in passing through thescreen l'lows in' op posite directions when traveling through the respective passages.

The damper 27 serves to close the passage 26 when the screen is positioned across the passage 25, or vice versa. thereby directing the 'air through the screen to receive lint upon the latter when the hot air is circulated and to liberate the lint from the screen by a current or currents of fresh air passing therethrough to the exhaust chamber 23.

It is also to be noted that the fan serves to drive the air through the heating compartment 12 and duct 11 alternately, and when the duct 11 is utilized the dampers 20 and 19 serve to exclude a flow of air through the compartment 12 thereby conserving the heat While the goods being dried are being ventilated, so to speak, by currents of relatively cool fresh air taken from the atmos-` phere.

What I claim, is,-

l. In a clothes drying machine` a casing having a heating chamber, a` coil therein, a drying chamber communicating with said heating chamber and an exhaust connection, a fan, a chamber therefor. the last named chamber havingv suction connections With the space within said drying chamber and also with the atmosphere outside of the casing, a duct connecting the fan chamber with said drying chamber, and draft regulating' means whereby the fan is rendered operative said fan within the casing, tWo air delivery f passages extending from the fan chamber to the drying chamber, an air heating coil provided in one of said passages, said drying chamber having an exhaust passage and a passage for the return of air to the fan chamber, and regulating means for said passages Whereby saidfan serves to drive air through the drying chamber and selectively through the medium of the air delivery passage containing said coil and through the return passage, or through the air delivery passage which is unprovided with a coil and said exhaust passage.

3. In a clothes drying machine, a casing having air inlet and outlet openings, a rotary clothes containing drum, an air heating coil, a chamber therefor, a power driven fan for supplying air to said drum for drying the contents thereof, manually vcontrolled means provided within the casing whereby said fan may be employed selectively to cause the circulation of the air in the casing and including said chamber or through said drum and between said casing openings exclusive of the chamber.

4. ln a clothes drying machine, a casing provided with air inlet and outlet openings, a rotary drum for the reception of articles to be dried, a rotary fan. a chamber therefor, said inlet opening communicating with said chamber. passages extending from said drum to said chamber and outlet respectively, a screen and a damper adapted to be used alternately in said passages, passagesiextending. from said chamber to a space provided in the casing above the drum, air heating means 'provided in one of the last named passages, and damper means provided for the last named passages whereby fan impelled air from said chamber is caused to pass through either one ofy such passages to the said space.

5. In a clothes drying machine having a casing provided with a drying chamber, an air heating chamber communicatively con nected at its upper end with said drying chamber, a fan chamber having an inlet for the admission of air from the atmosphere exteriorly of the machine, a passage extend ing from said drying chamber to said fan chamber, an exhaust passage extending from said drying chamber, an outlet connection between said fan chamber and the lower portion of said'heating chamber, and an air duct extending from said fan chamber and conununicating with the upper portion of said drying chamber, of a power driven fan provided n said fan chamber, means to heat said heating chamber, a screen arranged to be used in reverse positions alternately in the respective passages, and damper devices provided in the casing and adapted to cooperate with said screen whereby the fan will serve to effect the admission of air selectively from outside of the casing and thence pass successively through said duct, drying chamber and screen to escape through said exhaust passage, or to exclude ai'r from the outside of the casing and cause the air contained therein to circulate successively through the heating chamber, the drying chamber, the screen, and the fan cham-ber.

6. ln a clothes drying machine having a casing provided with a drying chamber, an air heating chamber communicatively connected at its upper end with said drying chamber, a fan chamber having an inlet for the admission of air from the atmosphere exteriorly of the machine, a passage extending from said drying chamber to fsaid fan chamber, an exhaust passage extending from said drying chamber, an outlet connection between said fan chamber and the lower portion of said heating chamber, and an air duct extending from said fan chamber and communicating with the upper portion of said drying chamber, of a power driven fan provided in said fan chamber, means to heat said heating chamber, and damper devices provided in the casin and adapted to direct the flow of air within the machine whereby the fan, will serve to elfect the admission of air selectively from outside of the vcasing and thence pass successively' through said duct, and drying chamber, to escape through said exhaust passage, or to exclude air from the outside of the casing and cause the air contained therein to circulate successively through the heating chamber, the drying chamber, and the fan chamber.

7. In a clothes drying machine, the com` bination with a ,casing provided with partitions to adord a drum chamber, a fan chamber, an exhaust passage,a space above the drum chamber, a passageway aifording communication between the Jian chamber and the space above the drum chamber, air heating means provided in said passageway, and a passage leading from said drum chamber to the fan chamber, of a clothes receiving drum provided in the drum chamber, a fan provided in the fan chamber, manually regulated means for effecting the circulation of air within the casing to pass through said chambers and said passageway, and a screen arranged to be used alternatel and in reversed positions in the respective passages.

Signed at Seattle, Washington, this 3rd day of February, 1922.

PIERRE BARNES, MARGARET G. Turista. 

